


Better in Threes

by Jace_Diaz_Of_Hell



Category: Animorphs - Katherine A. Applegate
Genre: Other, POLY GROUP YAY
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-01
Updated: 2017-07-06
Packaged: 2018-11-21 19:25:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,956
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11364039
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jace_Diaz_Of_Hell/pseuds/Jace_Diaz_Of_Hell
Summary: Who says only bad things come in threes?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Cavatica](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cavatica/gifts).



 

It was pretty obvious that Rachel and Tobias were a thing to the team. It was something they didn’t really discuss, aside from Marco’s occasional snide commentary. The team had much bigger things to worry about than who was dating who- like if they were going to survive the week.

 

Cassie was pleased by the fact that they were a couple- Tobias was certain Rachel kept him human, but she saw that they balanced each other out well. Rachel’s ferocity was balanced by Tobias’ understanding of what was necessary and not. Tobias’ occasional apathy was balanced by Rachel’s constant passion. 

 

There was only one problem with their relationship- Rachel had to keep it secret from her family. She couldn’t exactly let them know she was dating a boy who was assumed runaway, homeless, or dead. And that he was a  _ hawk.  _

  
  


So she didn’t mention she had a boyfriend, which was all well and good until her mother decided that fourteen was old enough to date. And when Rachel didn’t express a desire to date anyone- after all, she had no time between doing homework, gymnastics, father time, and kicking yeerk’s ass- so her mother decided to take it upon herself to find Rachel a date.

 

It was subtle and a bit amusing at first, just Naomi gently pushing Rachel into situations where she was around people her own age, hoping that Rachel would click with one of them. Rachel thought that a few of them were cute, sure, but she made sure her mother knew they weren’t her type. None of them could possibly relate to her. None of them could keep her from going too far.

None of them were Tobias.

 

Then it escalated to her Mom pointing out various people in Rachel’s class, making comments about good matches or  _ going to the movies with a few times,  _ and Rachel blurted it out.

 

“Mom, I’m  _ already  _ dating someone.” She growled in annoyance.  “And I’m  _ happy  _ with them, alright?”

 

_ Fucking hell.  _ Rachel thought immediately.  _ I shouldn’t have said that- _

 

“Who are you dating?” Naomi demanded. “And why haven’t I met them yet? You know that’s a family rule!”

 

“I’ll bring them by next week.” Rachel improvised, hoping her mom wouldn’t see the way her muscles immediately tightened with adrenaline.

 

Naomi accepted this with only a scowl and Rachel fled the house to the Animorphs meeting. It wasn’t an urgent one, thankfully, so Rachel was allowed to bring up this problem and ask for help solving it.

 

Marco laughed so hard he actually fell off of his hay bale, and Rachel glared at him, pushing the bale down on top of him.

 

“This is important. I can’t tell them I’m dating Tobias, he’s technically missing. That would be really complicated, and it would get too much attention from Controllers. I have no fucking clue what to do.”

 

“Well, there’s only one solution to this.”  Jake said, leaning forwards. “We have to have someone pretend to be your date.”

 

Marco sat up with a grin, obviously ready to make some comment, but Rachel pointed at him.

 

“ _ Not  _ you, Marco.” She said. “Jordan used to have a crush on you; I don’t think she still does, but I don’t want to risk it either. That’d just be embarrassing.”

  
  


“Does your mom have any rules about dating?” Jake asked. “Aunt Naomi seems like she would.”

 

“Well, she’s supposed to meet them when I’m sure the relationship is serious.” Rachel said. “She wants them to be doing well in school, or at least not going to drop out ASAP. She wants them to be someone whose parents she can meet at some point.”

 

“That rules out having Ax pretend to be your boyfriend.” Jake said, sighing. “Maybe we can get ahold of the Chee?”

 

“I’ll do it.” Cassie said after a moment, smiling when Rachel looked over at her. “Come on, I’d be perfect. I’ve got a B-plus average in school, we’ve been best friends for ages, and she already knows my parents.”

 

“It could work.” Rachel agreed, grinning. “Mom knows I’m not straight- and she doesn’t care, and that’s all that matters.”

  
“Alright, that’s settled then.” Jake said after a slightly awkward moment,  rubbing his temples. “Now, do we have any other business that needs mentioning?”

 

Marco raised his hand, grinning. 

 

“Well.  _ I’d  _ like to talk about my love life, but--”

 

<Don’t start, Marco.> Tobias warned, speaking for the first time in the meeting.

 

Marco lowered his hand. 

 

“Meeting adjourned.” Jake said, looking exhausted. “I’m going home, I have a lot of homework that I need to do.”

 

“If you’re going home, then I’m going home too.” Marco said, shooting to his feet. “Ax didn’t come today, so there’s no one to protect me if I say something and Xena wants to go all grizzly.”

 

Marco and Jake left, and Cassie could hear Marco starting up an argument over some comic. She smiled faintly, the sound familiar to her by now.

 

“If we’re introducing you as my girlfriend to Mom, I’m giving you a  _ massive  _ makeover. No bird-poop jeans, okay?”

 

“As long as I don’t have to wear a dress, anything is good.”

 

Rachel groaned playfully and Cassie shot her a grin; this was their way of normalcy, their version of arguing over comics.

 

“You’d show up to your own wedding in jeans, wouldn’t you?” Rachel accused. 

 

“Not in jeans. Maybe I’d wear a tux instead of a dress, though.”

 

Rachel pretended to scowl, folding her arms. “Would I be allowed to pick it out?”

 

“Obviously. I don’t have any fashion sense, remember?”

 

Rachel let out a sound that was half a sigh, half a laugh. “I know. I’ll see you next week, okay?? Mom wants me home now.”

 

Cassie nodded and leaned over, giving Rachel a one-armed hug. 

 

“See you next week…  _ honey.”  _ She said, teasingly.

“ _ No.”   _ Rachel said emphatically, though she was laughing when she exited. Her face was slightly pink, not that Cassie noticed.

 

Tobias did, but he didn’t mind. He fluttered down from his place on the rafters and perched on a hay bale, looking at Cassie. 

 

<Can I help you out in here?> He asked. Cassie barely paused in her work, smiling.

 

“Sure. There’s a lot to be done.”

 

She continued her work on the badger that was in the cage, calmly getting it to take it’s medicine and replacing the food in its bowl while she listened to the pops and cracks that meant  Tobias was morphing- that the boy was emerging from the bird slowly. 

 

When the cracks stopped, she picked up the badger’s water. It was barely drunken from, which made her frown slightly, not sure if that was a bad sign. She’d have to talk to her dad.

 

“You might want to put on overalls and a pair of boots. We have spares in that empty stall, there.” Cassie said.

 

Tobias swallowed and nodded slightly as though he wasn’t quite ready to speak, which made sense. He didn’t morph human very often. He needed time to remember the basic movements a mouth made.

 

Cassie walked into the little room that was separated off from the rest of the barn- the room where she had had to operate on Ax only a short while ago- and dumped the murky water in the trough, replacing it with clean and cool water. 

 

When she walked back out carefully with the bowl she set it down and picked up the chart, writing out a small note next to the Badger’s name chart. After that she looked up to see Tobias, whose pale cheeks flushed pink.

 

“Sorry, just… where do you want me to start?” He asked. Cassie inspected the room to look at the various injured creatures, finally settling. 

 

“Want to help me with this deer?” She asked, gesturing to it. “She’s very gentle. Some poachers were coming after her, but they only grazed her ribs.”

 

Tobias looked at the deer and tilted his head. She was young, just barely past being a fawn. If she had been out in the wild for much longer before Cassie found her, a golden eagle would most definitely have eaten her.

 

And Tobias wouldn’t have minded. It was the way things worked out there in the forest. Everyone knew. The strong survived. The weak were picked off one at a time. But here in Cassie’s barn things somehow felt different.

 

The best way he could describe it was… when he was younger and read books, he read about how churches used to be referred to as Sanctuaries. No harm was allowed to be brought to the people who looked for refuge there.

 

Cassie’s barn was a sanctuary, he realized. The animals that were brought there were safe, sheltered, cared for until they could go out into the world again. The Animorphs were allowed to shed the facade they had to play every moment of every day.

 

For Tobias, the place felt like another tether to humanity. Another place he held onto, another marker for him, a reminder he was both hawk and human, and that those worlds could coexist in ways other than prey and predator.

 

He and Cassie worked in silence for a while, comfortable. They needed no words to fill the silence. 

 

Eventually, though, Cassie began telling him about what they were discussing in their literature class. She knew he liked reading a lot and so she made sure to add detail, even going so far as to act out Marco’s play on Tybalt and how monotonous everyone else was in comparison, slamming her hand down on one of the empty cages for comparison.

 

And then Tobias  _ laughed.  _ Cassie tried not to act like it was anything major, but they rarely got a laugh out of him. He barely knew how to make human expressions anymore, kept his face eerily blank. Even when he thought-spoke, it was impossible to make him laugh. The most they ever got was a snort or an occasional chuckle.

 

But he was laughing, his blonde hair flopping in his face and his eyes squeezed shut and his shoulders bouncing.

 

And Cassie smiled at him, ignoring the way her heart sped up slightly as she turned back to the cages.

\------

“Are you sure you want me to do this?” Cassie blurted out, possibly in a last minute moment of panic.

 

Rachel turned to Cassie and set her hands on her hips, getting a  _ look  _ in her eyes that Cassie knew all too well. 

 

“I’m  _ sure,  _ Cassie.” She said firmly, extending her hands. “Now, come on. You know my mom loves you.”

“As your best  _ friend.  _ “ Cassie said, inhaling. 

 

“Datemates are just best friends who are romantic together.” Rachel pointed out. Her eyes softened for a second and she smiled, grabbing Cassie’s hands.

 

“Come on. You look good. My mom already adores you; this will be really easy to pull off.”

 

Cassie took a deep breath and let it out, looking down at herself. She wore a yellow dress, despite her protests. No one could say no to Rachel. Just enough makeup to define her features and a dark, berry shade of lipstick she had liked. She didn’t want any more than that.

 

“Alright. Let’s go.” She said, looking up briefly. She was startled to see the outline of a hawk in the sky, soaring high above the thermals. And she  _ knew  _ it was Tobias.

 

Somehow the sight of Tobias soaring over Rachel’s house, always ready to be their eye in the sky, calmed Cassie down. She smiled at Rachel and stepped inside, standing slightly behind Rachel.

 

“Rachel, finally!” Sighed Naomi, stepping forwards. “We’ve all been so excited to meet your partner, where are they?”

 

Rachel grinned brightly and stepped to the side, taking Cassie’s hand again. “Here she is!”

 

A moment of surprise flickered in Naomi’s eyes, then curiousity. 

 

“I thought you were dating my nephew?” She asked.   
  


Cassie shook her head, smiling.    
  


“No. We went to a dance together, but that was all. Rachel and I have been dating.” She said, not wanting to reveal too much.

 

“For a few weeks now.” Rachel added, squeezing her hand. 

 

Cassie looked up at Naomi, curious to see her reaction. After a few moments Naomi smiled. 

 

“You two are good together.” She said, leaning over and pressing a kiss to Cassie’s cheek. “I’m glad she’s dating someone who has a good influence on her.”

 

Dinner and everything went well- just as usual as when Cassie and Rachel hadn’t been “dating”. They talked about the animals in Cassie’s barn for the most part, and Rachel’s gymnastics for the last. 

 

When it was over, Cassie and Rachel went to the door, Rachel saying goodbye to Cassie.

 

“See you at school tomorrow.” Cassie said lightly, looking up at her with a grin.

 

Rachel leaned down and brushed her lips against Cassie’s. It felt like a spark of lightning, like the beginning of something. Cassie was blushing when she pulled away and smiled, heading out the door.   
  


Rachel’s lips were stained a slight berry color, and Naomi smiled at her.

 

<Want to go flying?> Tobias asked Cassie when she was out the door. She pretended to look around casually before giving a barely-noticeable nod. <Cool. There’s an alleyway behind the gas station, and no one around it. I stash my clothes there sometimes, you can come back for the dress later.>

 

A few minutes later, an osprey rose out of the alleyway, shooting up above Tobias before turning to the side, flying several yards away and several yards above him.

 

Once again, they flew in silence for a while. Then, as if not ready to break it, Tobias spoke hesitantly.

 

<How did it go?>

 

Cassie felt a small pang of guilt as she thought of the way Rachel’s lips felt against hers- the kiss had been filled with something, something she had never felt in her few safe kisses with Jake.

 

But Rachel and Tobias were dating. It wouldn’t be fair to either of them. She shook herself out of those thoughts, mentally bracing against the feelings she knew were going to arise again eventually.

 

<It was pretty good.> She answered honestly. <Naomi knows and loves me, so everything went really smooth.>

 

<That’s good.> Tobias said. There was a moment of hesitation before he spoke again. <Do you need help in the barn again?>

 

Cassie thought for a moment. She did need to catch up on her work, and the “date” with Rachel had taken more time than she had thought it would.

 

<Sure, I could use a hand.> She replied, angling down and landing in the loft. Luckily enough she had remembered to stash a spare outfit in the loft, and Tobias had started hiding clothes there just in case.

They worked side-by-side and when it was over, Cassie ran into her room quickly and re-emerged with a book that had just come out recently-  _ Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.  _ Cassie wasn’t sure what it was about, but it was fantasy. Tobias had used to lose himself in fantasy books and science fiction books. She reappeared downstairs and headed out to the barn, startled to find Tobias by the deer. He was just standing there, looking at it, a somewhat curious expression on his normally blank face.

 

When he noticed her he stepped back from the cage, turning slightly pink. Cassie wondered for a moment what it was about, then mentally shrugged it off and held out the book.

 

“I saw this in the bookstore at the mall. I thought you might like it.” She said. Tobias turned pink in earnest, taking the book from her hands gently.

 

“I… Cassie, thank you.” He said, his voice kind of rough. 

 

“It’s no problem.” Cassie said with a smile. “You still have an hour in morph, you can read here if you want.”

 

Tobias nodded, smiling gratefully and sitting on one of the hay bales. To Cassie’s slight surprise he began to read aloud. 

 

_ “Mr. and Mrs. Dursley, of number four, Privet Drive, were proud to say that they were perfectly normal, thank you very much. They were the last people you'd expect to be involved in anything strange or mysterious… _ ”

 

Cassie sat down on a hay bale not far from him, listening to him read quietly. Due to the long day and her chores and school, soon she found her eyes sliding shut, and she was asleep.

 

Noticing that his hour was almost up, Tobias picked up a dry straw of hay to keep his place. He turned to give the book back to Cassie before realizing she was asleep. He smiled, a soft and affectionate half-smile, before setting the book down in her hands. Looking around the stalls, he found a clean saddle blanket and draped that over her as best as he could.

 

Then he climbed to the loft and demorphed, flying out the window.


	2. Chapter 2

Cassie was getting more and more comfortable in her role as Rachel’s “girlfriend”. Everyone at school now thought they were dating- rumors spread fast once Jordan mentioned it and friends of Jordan told their older siblings.

 

Their displays of affection were simple, small things that secretly made Cassie smile when she thought back on them. Things like the day Cassie showed up wearing jeans that actually fit and a nice shirt, and Rachel saying loud enough for everyone to hear that “my girlfriend looks  _ great  _ today”. Or the day where Rachel did Cassie’s makeup and then, as they were leaving the bathroom, stopped to wipe a lipstick smudge on the corner of Cassie’s mouth.

 

Views on Cassie and Rachel’s “relationship” were split; some thought they were a good match and a cute couple. Others…

“So is this why you wouldn’t go out on that date with me?” 

 

“Go  _ away,  _ TT.” Rachel sighed, shutting her locker. Cassie stood there silently, books in her arms. She was going to walk home with Rachel, then go to her barn. Tobias came by a couple of times a week. He’d morph human and help with her homework, or he’d read aloud to her.

 

It was starting to be one of Cassie’s favorite parts of the week. She had never guessed she’d grow to be friends with Tobias, but treasured the peaceful times in her barn. 

 

Of course, between missions, school, and chores, she often ended up drifting off to sleep on one of the hay bales. She always woke up with a saddle blanket thrown over her and the  _ Harry Potter  _ book in her arms.

 

She  _ much  _ preferred it to something like this.

 

“No, I want to know. Is this why you wouldn’t go on that date with me?”

 

Cassie stepped forwards and took Rachel’s hand, hoping to keep her from punching someone out. Rachel’s expression softened, but only slightly.

 

“I didn’t go out on that date with you because you’re an asshole.” Rachel said, trying to keep her voice from verging on a growl. “My girlfriend is so much better than you.”

 

“Oh, I’m sure she is.” TT replied. “Miss Save-the-Animals, Hug the Trees. You probably cried watching that Seaworld documentary, didn’t you, Cassie?”

 

Cassie hadn’t cried, but she had felt nauseated at the treatment of the animals. And someone working at Seaworld  _ may  _ have gotten a lecture from a very angry orca whale at two in the morning. 

 

“Rach, let’s go home.” Cassie said, pulling on her hand. “He’s not worth it.”

 

Cassie watched her closely; Rachel’s tense shoulders slowly relaxed and she turned to face Cassie, smiling.   
  


“Let’s go home.” 

  
Cassie and Rachel started heading towards the doors. When they were about ten feet away, Rachel stopped. 

 

“Would you mind holding my books for a second?” She asked Cassie, tilting her head. “I think I forgot something.”

 

“Sure.” Cassie said easily, shifting her arms so Rachel could set her books on top of Cassie’s. Rachel turned and walked back towards her locker. For a moment Cassie thought she was going to actually get into her locker.

 

Then Rachel lurched forward and grabbed TT by the throat, slamming him off of a locker.

 

“You ever, _ ever  _ act like that to my girlfriend again and I will fucking  _ destroy  _ you.” She snapped at TT. Then she let go of his throat, walked back to Cassie and took her books back, acting as if nothing had happened.

 

Cassie was torn between lecturing Rachel on the importance of not losing her cool or laughing, or blushing because Rachel had just slammed someone off of a locker for her. 

 

Then again, she didn’t think she had the right to lecture Rachel. She  _ had  _ morphed an orca for the specific purpose of lecturing and threatening one of the trainers.

 

When they reached Rachel’s house, Cassie stood up on tiptoe and pressed a kiss to Rachel’s cheek. 

 

“Thank you.” She said finally, feeling a little awkward. Rachel, who was setting her books down on the inside table, turned faintly pink. 

 

And then she turned and grabbed Cassie by her waist, yanking her forwards till their lips met.

 

It was passionate and gentle and fierce and protective, and it was their first kiss that hadn’t been for anyone’s benefit and it was  _ wonderful.  _

 

Cassie was left feeling both strong and weak, vulnerable and safe. She looked up at Rachel with wide eyes, blushing. 

 

Rachel grinned at her fiercely, kissing her a second time. 

 

“I’ll see you at school tomorrow.” She said.

 

“I… Yeah. See you.” Cassie said, blushing as she turned and walked down the driveway.

 

When Rachel’s door closed behind her, Cassie touched her lips and smiled softly.

 

* * *

 

“Perhaps Harry had eaten a bit too much, because he had a very strange dream. He was wearing Professor Quirrell's turban, which kept talking to him, telling him he must transfer to Slytherin at once, because it was his destiny. Harry told the turban he didn't want to be in Slytherin; it got heavier and heavier; he tried to pull it off but it tightened painfully -- and there was Malfoy, laughing at him as he struggled with it -then Malfoy turned into the hook-nosed teacher, Snape, whose laugh became high and cold -- there was a burst of green light and Harry woke, sweating and shaking.

He rolled over and fell asleep again, and when he woke next day, he didn't remember the dream at all.”

 

Chapter Seven over, Tobias shut the book and sighed, another rarely seen smile on his face. He looked over, expecting Cassie to be asleep, only to find she was awake and smiling at him sleepily.

 

“I like this book.” She commented idly. “It’s pretty good.”

 

“It is.” Tobias agreed, smiling. “Magic is kind of cool.”

 

Cassie nodded slightly, smiling. “It is. And Hogwarts! A place like that would be really amazing.”

 

“Yeah.” Tobias said with a grin, then paused. “What house do you think everyone would be in?”

 

Cassie hesitated before answering, considering their friends and their key traits.

 

“Marco is Slytherin.” She said. “He’s cunning and he knows how to be ruthless to get what he wants, even when he doesn’t  _ want _ to be ruthless. Jake and Rachel are Gryffindor- where dwell the brave at heart.” She quoted wryly, grinning.

 

Tobias saw a look of affection cross her face, replaced by a guilty one and then back to normal, and blinked in confusion. He pushed it to the back of his mind to think about later- now was just his time to hang out with Cassie. 

 

“Ax would be a Hufflepuff.” She continued, smiling. “He’s loyal to his Prince and the cause, and he works hard. And I think you would be a Ravenclaw, Tobias.” She said, looking him in the eye. “You value knowledge a lot. You like helping with my homework and you collect ninety percent of the intel for the team.”

 

Tobias nodded, absorbing all of this before speaking up again.

 

“You didn’t say what house you’d be in.” He pointed out.

 

Another look flashed across Cassie’s face- an almost vulnerable look. Tobias felt a sudden surge of emotion- he didn’t like seeing that look on Cassie’s face. He didn’t want her to feel like that. He wanted to see her smile again.

 

“That’s because I don’t know where I belong.” She said quietly. “I’m not smart like a Ravenclaw. I would say Gryffindor, but I’m not like Rachel and Jake. I care about people, but I take the knowledge I have and use it against them when I have to and I hate that part of me. I don’t think-”

 

Tobias held up a hand to interrupt her, smiling. 

 

“I think I know.” He told her, leafing through the pages in the book. 

 

“ _ You might belong in Hufflepuff, _

_ Where they are just and loyal, _

_ Those patient Hufflepuffs are true _

_ And unafraid of toil.”  _

He recited the words before closing the book again, looking back at Cassie with an affectionate smile. 

 

“You’re definitely a Hufflepuff.” He said. “You’ve always been our moral compass- you know how to keep  _ everyone  _ feeling human in this war. You’re loyal to us. You’ve always tried to be as honest as you can. And out of all of us, you work the hardest outside of Animorphs business. You juggle homework with chores two or three times a day and filling out countless charts… I don’t know how you do it. You’re amazing, Cassie.”

 

Cassie looked up at Tobias, her heart pounding in her chest.

 

She wasn’t aware they were leaning forwards till they were kissing. This kiss was different from the passion and lightning of Rachel’s kisses. It was warm and tentative and sweet. It spoke of knowing someone and caring deeply for them, and Cassie wished it wouldn’t end.

 

Eventually though, it did end, and they pulled back. Tobias was blushing and his eyes were bright. Cassie could feel herself blushing and was silently glad it wasn’t so obvious to see as Tobias’. If it had been people would have been able to tell she had been blushing for pretty much three weeks straight.

 

“My two hours are almost up.” Tobias said, standing. “See you tomorrow?”

 

“See you tomorrow.” Cassie confirmed.

 

He left, and she sighed, leaning against a hay bale and waiting for her pulse to slow.

 

_ This isn’t fair to either of them.  _

 

Cassie decided she had to talk to Tobias and Rachel before the next meeting. She called Rachel up that night and asked her to show up a little early.

 

When Rachel agreed Cassie set the phone back in its reciever, burying her face in her hands and taking a moment to breathe. She was _not_ looking forward to this conversation.  


* * *

Cassie was already working in the barn furiously when Rachel entered, looking a little curious, but smiling. There was a sort of hidden light in her eyes that Cassie didn’t pick up on.

 

“Any reason why you wanted me here early?” She asked, leaning against one of the cages. Cassie, stuffing her hand down a badger’s throat, replied in a monotone.

 

“Yeah. I have to talk to you and Tobias.”

 

“About what?” Tobias asked.

  
Cassie glanced up to see he was coming down the ladder from the loft and couldn’t help but be a little surprised. She hadn’t expected him to morph human today. 

 

The badger finally swallowed his pills and Cassie pulled her hand out of his throat, turning to face Rachel and Tobias.

 

“I’m sorry.” Cassie blurted out.

 

“For what?” Tobias asked, a curious look on his face. “You haven’t done anything wrong.”

 

Cassie shook her head slightly.

 

“Yes, I have. I know this whole thing with Rachel was supposed to just be a setup. And I’ve really enjoyed hanging out with you in here, Tobias.” She said, then paused to recollect her thoughts. “But I realized I ended up developing a crush on both of you and thats just  _ not fair  _ to you gu-”

 

Rachel held up a hand, looking fairly amused. 

 

“Hang on. You have a crush on both Tobias and I…” She said, raising an eyebrow. “And you’re apologizing for it?”

 

Cassie nodded, wishing this conversation were over already, waiting for Rachel to glare or get mad at her. Instead, Rachel started laughing, surprising Cassie.

  
  


“Aren’t you mad at me or something?” Cassie asked, tilting her head.

 

“ _ No _ !” Rachel said, grinning. Tobias was chuckling, which was confusing Cassie. What was going on?

 

“Listen, Cassie.” Tobias said after a moment, giving Rachel time to stop laughing and calm down. “Rachel and I talked a couple of days ago, and we realized we both have a crush on you too.” He said, running a hand through his hair and smiling slightly. “We were going to ask you today if you wanted to join our relationship officially.”

 

Cassie blinked, then blushed. “Are you sure you guys want me?” She asked, raising an eyebrow.

 

“Believe me, there is literally  _ no one  _ else who we would ask.” Rachel said, now smirking. “We  _ care  _ about you, Cassie.”

 

Cassie thought about it, a slow grin spreading across her face as she lurched forwards, throwing her arms around both Rachel and Tobias. 

 

“Then yes,” She said, her voice muffled because her face was pressed into Rachel’s shoulder, “I want to.”

 

When Jake and Marco showed up fifteen minutes later for the meeting, Cassie was sprawled across Tobias and Rachel’s laps, sleeping quietly. Rachel was running a hand through Cassie’s hair soothingly, and Tobias was reading aloud from Chapter Eight of  _ Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. _

 

Rachel saw them first and held a finger to her lips, the meaning clear.

 

_ Don’t wake her up. _

 

Marco groaned quietly.

 

“As if they weren’t mushy enough already.” He whispered to Jake, though he was smiling. “Now they literally have the queen of softness with them.”


End file.
